I awoke from my day rest the following evening hearing Sookie, which was usually an enjoyable thing, however, instead of hearing happy noises, she was yelling and sounded very upset. That was most certainly not enjoyable, though it did offer a distraction to the negative thoughts I was having about what would be happening come the next evening.
I had returned last night to find everyone asleep. Jason had fallen asleep in front of the television while the females in the house were asleep in their respective bedrooms. Pam had been out, probably to order more pink, but returned before sunrise. Everything was as it should have been, given the situation.
I did not know what happened during the day to produce the sounds I was hearing from Sookie, but I was on my way to find out.
I followed the noises that she was producing into the kitchen. Sookie was screaming unintelligible words at Amelia while Jason was looked at Amelia indignantly. Pam was at my side when Amelia said, "You're not helping, Jason."
"I just don't see why she gotta eat 'em is all. Vegetables are gross," Jason said and gave a disgusted shake of his head. That was when I understood that one of the words Sookie was shouting, and not correctly pronouncing, was 'vegetables.' I used my deductive skills to determine that the other word was 'no.'
When Sookie noticed that I was in the kitchen, she attempted to compose herself. It was difficult as her little body was shaking with her cries. She calmed down enough so that I could grasp the general concept of her distress. She wanted to know why she still had to eat her vegetables if her brother did not.
"Jason can make all the stupid decisions about himself he wants," Amelia said in response. Neither Stackhouse looked as if they appreciated that answer. The groans they both uttered at her words showed just how much they did not appreciate her statement.
Amelia then came over to me and, possibly after mustering all the courage she had, tapped my shoulder, and said, "Tag, you're it," before she walked out of the kitchen. I could only assume that her words meant I was now in charge of getting Sookie to eat her vegetables. The matching faces on the Stackhouses suggested it would not be as easy as I thought to make five-year-old Sookie eat vegetables.
I followed Amelia and quickly asked her if a night of vegetables could be skipped. She looked at me as if I was insane. "If you skip one night, why not skip the next, and then the next?" she asked.
"I would explain that it was only for one night."
"You're dealing with a five-year-old, and, well, Jason. Not the most rational of creatures."
"I do not care if Jason eats his vegetables, but Sookie must."
"So make sure she does," Amelia told me as she muttered that all she needed was five minutes. She then sat on the couch and closed her eyes. I started to return to the kitchen, but Amelia said, "She's been grumpy like this all day. She did not get enough sleep last night, and she refused to nap with her brother here. She's exhausted."
"Her screaming would suggest otherwise."
Amelia gave a burst of a laugh at that. "Yes, but her screaming is a symptom of her exhaustion, and it also exhausts us. It's a vicious cycle."
A small bang came from the kitchen and Amelia said, "You better get back in there."
I quickly returned to the kitchen to discover that there was a fork on the floor. Seeing that Sookie had both her fork and spoon still on her plate, it was seemingly Jason who had been the one that dropped his fork. I ignored the older Stackhouse, sat down on the chair beside Sookie, and gave her my attention.
"Sookie, you have to eat your vegetables."
"No," she said, and then she looked away from me. I looked at Jason, he shrugged his shoulders, and I knew that he would not be of any assistance. Pam had tried, but to no avail.
"Sookie, eating you vegetables is just one of those things you have to do. It is like your job," I told her as I recalled a conversation we had had regarding my job and my grumpy bosses.
"You want to grow big and strong, correct?" I asked her.
"No!" she yelled, dumping her whole plate on the floor. She looked at the mess she had made before she looked back at me, and then ran out of the kitchen, slamming her door when she got to her room.
"You have to go after her," Amelia told me.
"It would seem she does not want company at the moment."
"Eric, you can't just let her stew in her room. You have to go after her and talk to her. She can't act this way and she needs to know that. She also needs to know that you aren't angry with her."
I was still uncertain there was logic to Amelia's words, but when Jason took my side and said that Sookie should just be left alone, I began to understand the rationality behind her words. Running away was a behavior I had hoped I would never see again from Sookie, regardless of her form. Unfortunately, it was a behavior that I was more than accustomed to and I just allowed her leave in the past.
Perhaps it was time for that to change.
I ignored the two supposed adults in the room while they argued over what they thought was best for Sookie and went up to her room. At first I was going to just open the door, but instead I decided to knock.
"What?" Sookie said from the other side, but her voice was not as harsh as it could have been with that simple term.
"It is Eric. May I come in?" I was not quite certain what I planned to do if she had answered no. All I knew was that there was no way that I would not be entering that room.
Fortunately Sookie answered, "Yes," although it was a very weak yes that came after a long pause. I used it to enter the room though. Sookie was on her bed with a stuffed toy, most likely from Pam, in her hands. She was not playing with it as much as she was simply holding it in her lap. It did not escape me that she was also holding the pillow she had brought along with from her house because she liked the way it smelled.
She looked at me with a bit of trepidation. I imagined that she might have concerns on the way I might react to what had happened downstairs in my kitchen. I would stay in control of me, and the situation. As much as it would have been simpler to just give in to her in the situation, Amelia was correct that it might set a bad precedent.
"I don't like vegetables," she muttered, but again, it was not with anywhere near the force that she had screamed it downstairs.
"You ate some the other night," I told her as I sat down on the bed next to her.
"The green ones are okay," she replied in a small voice. "But I ate all of them and we didn't have any more."
"We will get you more of the vegetables you do like," I would have to make certain Sookie had the food she needed. I also had to make certain that she understood she could not do what she had done in the kitchen when faced with things she simply did not like. She could not throw tantrums.
"You know that yelling at Amelia in that way, yelling at anyone that way, is something that you have to try not to do."
"But I was angry!" she said, and I heard the anger start to build once more in her voice.
"It is all right to be angry," I told her. "But when you are angry, you must find a way to tell someone in a way that you are not yelling or screaming. If everyone is angry, then no one will be able to fix the problem."
"But Amelia really wanted me to eat the vegetables but I didn't like them. "
"She knows I like broccoli and green beans."
"But did she know that you did not like corn?" I asked, recalling the yellow vegetable I saw on Sookie's plate. Sookie had no response for that. "Even if she knew, if it was the only vegetable we had, could you have tried a mouthful or two?"
"I could have, but it would have been icky," she told me as she stuck out her tongue.
"Still, it could have been a compromise of sorts. Amelia would have seen that you were willing to try it, but when she saw that you did not like it, she may not have asked you to eat it all."
Sookie looked down when I said that. "She did try to put a lot of butter on to make them yummy."
"That is something we can all do, right? We can all try things," I was determined to try a few things with Sookie when she returned to her adult form.
"Yes," she said and she nodded her head. "I 'spose so." She suddenly wrapped her arms around my neck and said, "I'm sorry I threw the plate," into it.
"It is not all right that you threw it, but I do forgive you."
"I need to use my words," she said and she nodded her head as if she was agreeing with herself. It is always a good thing if one agrees with oneself.
"Everyone needs to use their words," I amended.
I then had to bring up something I had tried to deny would actually occur, but I simply could not any longer. "Tomorrow night, would it will be all right if you came to work with me?" I asked, trying to keep my disgust at the thought out of my voice. I hated the fact that I was bringing her, in this form, to Fangtasia. I despised the fact that I was doing so for her to read the minds of some humans. I detested the feeling that I was using her for her abilities; something I had sworn I would never do.
I had vowed to do all I could to keep her safe. The population in Fangtasia tomorrow night would only be vampires I trusted. The few humans that would be in attendance would be glamoured to reduce the number of thoughts so that Sookie would not be bombarded. I had planned everything I could to ensure that Sookie would be safe and not overwhelmed.
Yet, I still loathed that it had to be done at all.
The look of excitement on her face did not match my feelings on the idea. "I get to be with you the whole night!" she exclaimed.
"The whole night," I confirmed. There was no way in hell I would leave her.
"I think it's more than all right!"
"Would it still be all right if we played a game with some people and their inside voices?"
She looked at me before she asked, "A game?"
Then I hated myself even more than I already did.
"Yes, a game to hear what those people are thinking."
"You won't get mad at me for listening to them?"
"I will not get mad. I think your power is a great one to have. There will be nothing for me to be mad about. You would be helping me with this game," I told her.
"As long as you won't get mad," she said.
"I will not get mad," I reiterated to her. She then agreed to come to work with me the following evening. She seemed excited at the notion; that was not an emotion I was feeling about it.
"Will you come back downstairs with me?" I was surprised when she told me that she just wanted to go to bed. Amelia must have been correct about Sookie being exhausted. "Do you think anyone should get an apology tonight?"
Sookie looked down at my question, but grudgingly admitted that she needed to apologize to Amelia. She looked up after I told her I would help her to bed afterward. After she and Amelia had a short conversation, I took her back upstairs and made sure she had brushed her teeth, washed her face, had a cup of water by her bed, and was comfortable in her pajamas under the covers. I started to tell her a story, a tale of one of my adventures before I was turned. It took only two minutes, and then she was asleep.
I went downstairs to inform Amelia of the change in plans for tomorrow night. She would take Sookie to Fangtasia before sundown with Tray and members of his Pack. I wanted her there before nightfall. I would return home with her as soon as we learned all of the information. Pam and Thalia would stay to discuss any findings with Victor and I would await his call here. With Sookie. She would be nowhere near Victor the entire night. My vampires across the state would assist me in ensuring that.
"I could help with some spells," she said after I explained what would be happening.
"Anything that you think would help." She looked surprised at my answer. I realized then that my general distaste of the young witch was probably something that I had not hidden well. "Thank you for your assistance," I told her, and I might have even managed to make it sound as if I meant it. I did, in a way. Amelia had never seemed too fond of me and seemed to share her disdain with Sookie. That was not something that I could ever appreciate, but her help during the day had been.
"I'm glad I could," she said, and then she told me she wanted to take a quick shower before Pam and I left. It seemed that we both were hesitant to leave the two Stackhouses alone with each other. I had a brand new respect for Sookie's grandmother.
The elder Stackhouse was once again watching my television. I thought that it had more use since he had arrived than it had in the two years that I had lived in this particular house. Pam met me in the living room and we were about to take our leave for Fangtasia when I saw a shadow move across the window as someone moved toward the front door.
I grabbed Stackhouse, told him to take Amelia, and wait upstairs with Sookie. With any luck, Amelia had some spell that could protect them if need be, but I was not letting anyone up those stairs. Pam and I took positions on either side of the door. We looked at each other when, instead of the door bursting down, we heard a faint knock. Opposing forces rarely knock…
I motioned to Pam while I took a step toward the door. She moved with me and took position at my back. I opened the door and heard, "I apologize for not being able to call first," while Cataliades entered my house.
"Were you followed?" I asked when I looked outside past him. I closed the door once he had crossed the threshold, and was ensured that no one else was in the immediate area.
"No. As soon as I lost my tail, I headed here, carefully," he added before he sat down on my couch. "Any chance of getting some water?"
Pam left the room and quickly returned with a glass of water for the part-demon who had started to tell me his tale. I knew that he had been on the run from de Castro and his men, but I had not known that Cataliades had not been stopped able to rest during the chase.
"I would have helped had I known it had been that bad." He waved his arm at me and told me that I had my own set of hoops I had been attempting to jump through.
"I appreciate the thought, Eric, but that would have only resulted in more trouble for the both of us. We both have had enough to deal with on our own."
"But you are here now."
"When it comes to family, there is no 'on your own'." I saw the look in his eyes, and it was one that brought me great comfort. It was a look that I could comprehend; it was a look that said he would defend anyone he thought of as his. For the information the person in front of me could offer, I was more than pleased that he considered Sookie his.
"Have you been able to uncover any further information?" I would not have been surprised if he answered in the negative. Angry at the situation, but not surprised after what the demon had been through himself.
He gave me a smile, which had me hopeful that he had found something, or at least had a starting point. "What do you know about vengeance demons?"
Could it be? Could we finally be getting answers, at least some answers? Quite possibly. I do hope that you have enjoyed this chapter. Many thanks to MsBuffy for her help with it!
I was able to upload a few more chapters before FF decided no to cooperate. I do apologize for not being able to respond to reviews as well. Hopefully, I will be able to this chapter! I appreciate all the feedback!